The Ecuador Organic Espindola that I’d roasted up and been enjoying suddenly tasted unripe with notes of unripe apricot where before the coffee had been sweet and balanced. Concerned, I stopped at a coffee shop to test my senses. The shot of espresso (Verve Sermon, I believe) tasted fine, but the V60 prep of the Verve Colombia Reserve El Faldon also tasted unripe.

This was confounding, where was the sweetness. My perception of salt, sour, and bitter seemed unaffected. I wasn’t sure if I were getting sick, possibly affected by allergies, or what was going on. In the back of my mind, I knew I’d quit vitamins a day or two before, but didn’t think it would make that much difference. At work, I noticed that a clementine I’d brought into work with me tasted sour, but I couldn’t be sure if it was unripe or just my perception of it so I sampled chocolate and Jolly Rancher candy and could get a sensation of sweetness, but the subtle sweetness of coffee eluded me.

This pattern continued another day or two until I resumed my vitamins, and the sweetness in the Ecuador coffee returned. I’m curious if other’s have noticed this with their own taste perception?

I’ve been enjoying putting the Behmor Brazen through it’s paces since it arrived this week. I’ve been eagerly awaiting this since Joe Behm demonstrated this brewer in person at the SCAA Symposium in Portland. The Brazen is replacing a Bunn BTX brewer that I picked up years ago at a thrift store. With four coffee drinkers in the house, I was not able to keep up with coffee consumption in the mornings, so I got the BTX out of the garage. Still, I missed the great flavor and aroma from brewing methods such as the Chemex brewer with an Able Brewing company Kone metal filter.

The Brazen comes with a pancake shaped gold coffee filter and features precise temperature control (calibrated upon arrival and compensated for altitude) and a programmable pre-soak feature to allow your coffee to bloom before washing the solubles into the pot. The Brazen is marked with 600, 900, and 1,200 ml fill lines and as
I’ve been using 900 ml water and 50 grams coffee with my BTX it was natural to start there. After calibration, the temperature is set to maximum and the pre-soak time defaults to 15 seconds, fine for commercial or pre-ground coffee, but not ideal for specialty or home-roasted coffee. Roastmasters threw in a pound of Willoughby’s Ethiopia Yirgacheffe with the brewer and I also received two excellent bags of coffee (Rwanda Dukunde Kawa and Guatemala Antigua Bella Carmona) from Greenway Coffee and all the coffees came about a week off roast. I set the pre-soak time to 45 seconds (what I use with the BTX) and the temp to 202°F for my first brews and brewed up a pot of the Dukunde Kawa. I also coarsened up the grind from the BTX setting (pretty fine because the BTX brews pretty quickly) setting the Macro lever of my Vario about 3/4 down from Fine to Coarse. When I brew my fresh home-roast, I’ll use an even longer pre-soak time, probably around 1:30 to make sure that the coffee doesn’t expand during the release of carbon dioxide as the coffee blooms and it the showerhead.

The Dukunde Kawa was very floral with great flavor and the full body of a metal filter, I was not disappointed. I was happy enough with the resulting batch to pick up some four ounce jelly jars so I can pre-measure my 50 gram doses for weekday mornings (and maybe even show the rest of the family how to brew a pot if I’m not home).

This weekend, I also played with the manual release feature, which holds the water temp at the programmed setting for ten minutes and has timers for the release and pauses allowing you to manually brew coffee in a Chemex or in my case heat water to a desired temperature for tea. I set the temp to 210°F (my max temp as I live near sea level) for my Lapsang Soushong strong black smoke tea and brewed up a pot. I used a vintage Corning carafe and the base of the carafe was just the right size to fit in the centering indentation of the Brazen which made it dead simple.

Finally, I tried out an iced coffee recipe with the Brazen. I love iced coffee prepared by brewing the coffee hot directly into ice which results in a bright, aromatic coffee. I’ve tried to like cold brew, but to me it just tastes muted. I know that’s personal preference, others will probably say hot brewed iced coffee is too bitter and bright. I’ve created iced coffee recipes for the Aeropress, Kalita Wave, and Chemex so why not the Brazen? In order to prevent over-dilution, I use a strong 12:1 water to coffee ratio (my normal ratio is 16:1) and 60% water to 40% ice. Hearing from others that the Greenway Coffee Guatemala Antigua Bella Carmona makes a nice iced coffee, I used the following recipe.

70 60 g coffee

500 550 ml 202°F water

1 minute pre-soak

340 g ice

The resulting brew was great, like a caramel covered green apple. There was quite a bit of ice left unmelted so the recipe could be tweaked with more water to ice and you could also adjust the 12:1 ratio with more total water+ice to coffee, but it worked out quite well as a test recipe. (recipe updated)

Overall, I’ve been very happy with the Brazen and am looking forward to trying out brewing different coffees at different temperatures to bring out the best from the coffee.

Inspired by all the mentions, I brewed up a small cup of my recent roast of a Kenya AA Mutwewathi in the Aeropress. It’s been a while since I brewed AP cold coffee and I normally brew the AP in an inverted method (with the Able Brewing Disk) so I was a bit chagrined when the coffee started dripping through the paper filter before I’d stirred it, but it still turned out nice, if a bit underextracted. Enjoy the season. My starting point recipe follows the pictures. I favor the bright coffees from Africa like a good Kenya or Ethiopia for the hot brew methods.

]]>https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2012/04/05/iced-coffee-season-aeropress-edition/feed/0yakstrIced AeropressIced in a cupHCR Cafehttps://yakstr.wordpress.com/2012/02/26/hcr-cafe/
https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2012/02/26/hcr-cafe/#commentsSun, 26 Feb 2012 03:03:45 +0000http://yakstr.wordpress.com/?p=182]]>Handsome Coffee Roasters opened their cafe today in Los Angeles and I was lucky enough to be able to stop by for a coffee on my way home.

I’m familiar with HCR from their social media launch and was also lucky enough to be part of the “first forty” where I received their pre-production roasts while they were working things out and starting up. I could see even in these early roasts that I like their roast style emphasizing clean, sweet flavors. Eventually, a local coffee shop started carrying HCR coffee too, another lucky break.

The offering at HCR is simple: coffee. They have espresso, coffee with milk, and cold coffee with milk behind the bar and no sweetener in sight. I took a Fisticuffs Espresso and a Rwanda for myself, two iced coffees with milk and a Colombia with milk for the family.

The coffee was great, sweet and clean and my wife even eschewed sweetener in her iced coffee and enjoyed it, a definite win. I snuck out to my car to guiltily add sweetener to the kids drinks.

I’m on my way home now and I wish the HCR team the best of luck on their great new cafe.

]]>https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2012/02/26/hcr-cafe/feed/1yakstrIMAG0134.jpgIMAG0131.jpgIMAG0133.jpgPortola Coffee Labhttps://yakstr.wordpress.com/2012/02/24/portola-coffee-lab/
https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2012/02/24/portola-coffee-lab/#commentsFri, 24 Feb 2012 17:12:34 +0000http://yakstr.wordpress.com/?p=175]]>I visited Portola Coffee Lab in Orange County yesterday and was very impressed with all the brew methods available, baristas in lab coats, and the wide selection of coffee gadgets and books for sale.

Here you can see the Hario cold drip brewers with siphons in the background.

Here’s a photo of the V60 bar with Bunn Trifecta brewers in the background.

I chose a Trifecta brew of a Malawi coffee, then later a machiato.

]]>https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2012/02/24/portola-coffee-lab/feed/2yakstrIMAG0116.jpgIMAG0117.jpgIMAG0118.jpgTwo Levershttps://yakstr.wordpress.com/2012/02/15/two-levers/
https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2012/02/15/two-levers/#commentsWed, 15 Feb 2012 18:54:08 +0000http://yakstr.wordpress.com/?p=164]]>When I scored my Gaggia Factory G106 manual lever, the FE-AR La Peppina was put in the garage. This was for practical matters like not having enough room on the counter and also wanting to devote my time to learning how to use the manual Gaggia and work on texturing and pouring milk (still need a lot of work there) but it was never intended to be for as long as it’s been. I’d intended to refinish a sideboard to make a home for both machines, but that project keeps getting bumped down on the priority list and it’s been about eight months since I’ve last used the La Peppina.

I took the neglected lever and tore it down to clean and lube the cylinder, gaskets and valves in preparation for a Home-Barista meet-up and now I’ve made room in the kitchen (at least temporarily) for the La Peppina next to the Tin Man. I think they look good together, but their character is completely different. The La Peppina is gentle and controlled (with a PID for very stable temperature) and when I get my technique back I expect shots of fine clarity but without the dominant body of the Factory. The Factory is more bold and fiery and temperamental and needs to be watched all the time to make sure that the temperature is in the right range for a good shot, but the Factory has a good steam wand and manual lever for thick, powerful shots.

I think I’d have a hard time choosing between these two, as I feel that like all good pairs they compliment each other.

If you love lever espresso machines, check out my friend’s Old World Espresso site featuring beautiful Bosco espresso machines.

Recent forum discussions have me thinking about describing coffee with flavor analogs such as blueberry, chocolate, bergamot, etc. and when I picked up some fresh starfruit and was struggling to find flavor analogs for the fruit (celery, grapefruit) but missing the mark.

Further reflection leads me to believe that people who know starfruit probably just say it tastes like starfruit. Are flavor analogs a crutch holding us back from knowing what a wet process caturra or a natural bourbon tastes like and really knowing the factors that affect the cup?

I use the MyPressi Twist at work for espresso, and I take it with me when I want to pull espresso at a friends house and plan to take it camping with me. I didn’t think that the included bag afforded enough protection and I got tired of loading up the original cardboard box, so I was on the lookout for a case. When a Harbor Freight Tools opened up next to one of my favorite coffee roasters, I decided to go in for a look, and I found a small case that’s just about perfect for the twist here (Item number 69316 36870 11-1/2″ x 7-1/2″ x 4-1/2″ padded aluminum case in case the link changes).

I ordered some recycled electronic foam from eBay and hacked out a basic form to come up with the case below. I’ve got enough foam so that I can change the layout, I’m thinking of including a small coffee container and losing some of the N20 cylinders if I do.

Update: I pulled out the Twist and foam and just loaded it up with coffee for recent trips using the Aeropress and Coava Coffee Disk (#008). This worked great and an added bonus was that it fit tightly into my carry-on leaving just a little less room for clothing. The travel mug shown works well as an improvised pouring kettle and I stuff it and the Aeropress with coffee to maximize the carrying capacity. I think I’ll be buying a second case so I can have one dedicated to the Twist and the other carry the coffee, cups, etc.

Update again: I ordered a Lido 2 from Orphan Espresso and with the catch cup removed and the grinder in a neoprene wine sack, it just fits in the old coffee case.

]]>https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2011/04/11/mypressi-twist-case/feed/0yakstrLiquid Amber Tastinghttps://yakstr.wordpress.com/2011/03/20/liquid-amber-tasting/
https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2011/03/20/liquid-amber-tasting/#respondSun, 20 Mar 2011 07:58:40 +0000http://yakstr.wordpress.com/?p=78]]>This post is an evaluation of different roasts of Sweet Maria’sLiquid Amber blend. For those who are not familiar with this blend, it’s a mix of green coffee beans that includes robusta and monsooned beans, it’s strong enough to cut through milk, has lots of crema and the robusta and monsooned beans give it a little pleasant funkiness.

Green Liquid Amber Blend

I performed the evaluation using 14 grams of each roasted sample in the 45 mm double basket of my La Peppina spring lever espresso machine. The brew water was set for 91 degrees Celsius. I had about 22 grams of each sample so I couldn’t really afford to dial in or pull multiple shots, luckily the La Peppina is pretty forgiving.

The lightest roasted sample still had a lot of chaff in the central bean crack, had a slight oil sheen (eleven days post roast), and the beans are still crinkled. This looks like a full city or maybe a full city+ roast, but it can be hard to judge the roast by color especially with monsooned beans in the mix. The second roasted sample had more oil sheen, less chaff, and almost the same roast color of the first sample; I judge this to be a Full City+ roast. The final sample is the darkest with a lot of surface oils, no visible chaff in the central crack, and is smoother; this looking like a french roast. All three roast samples showed round divots where little chunks of beans were blown out by escaping moisture. A slower ramp to first crack is indicated.

Next I pulled shots of each sample. The first sample had a distinct rubber tire taste stemming from the robusta and maybe monsooned components in the blend. The crema was good and there was a hint of black licorice. This blend doesn’t work that well at this light a roast. The second sample was pulled, and I almost choked the machine, but ended up with a much better shot. I could still taste rubber tire, but also more chocolate notes; again with very good crema. I adjusted the grind for the final shot and got a good pull, again with lots of crema. This shot was bittersweet chocolate, maybe too bitter, but the rubber tire was no longer noticeable and the shot had a good finish, with, as usual, good crema. Between the three shots I took a break, drank lots of water, and ate some crackers to cleanse my palate.

Overall, I enjoyed sampling the coffee and appreciate the opportunity. I’d suggest a slower roast profile, such as the P3 profile on the Behmor and to target a vienna roast midway through second crack.

]]>https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2011/03/20/liquid-amber-tasting/feed/0yakstrGreen Liquid Amber BlendTwist vs. Podhttps://yakstr.wordpress.com/2011/03/04/twist-vs-pod/
https://yakstr.wordpress.com/2011/03/04/twist-vs-pod/#respondFri, 04 Mar 2011 23:42:55 +0000http://yakstr.wordpress.com/?p=50]]>March 4, 2011: We moved upstairs this week at work, and because the new kitchen area isn’t plumbed in there’s no running water or sink so management provisioned the kitchen area with a Nespresso ES-100 Pro pod monster to fulfill our coffee needs. This is, no doubt, an upgrade from the coffee setup downstairs, but not exactly my idea of a good solution for personal coffee.

When I went downstairs to pull a couple of espresso shots on my mypressi TWIST a co-worker asked me if I’d tried the new machine yet. I had to admit that I hadn’t had a chance yet but let him know that I’m not a fan of pod machines. Since I’d ground and prepared two baskets for a double-tap, I let him take on of the shots.

His feedback was illuminating, he mentioned that he could pull out orange and other strong flavors. He was really impressed and after trying a shot told me not to bother trying the Nespresso. We talked about coffee versus espresso and a few other topics, but it’s really getting someone to take that first drink of good espresso that seems to make a difference. The coffee was Stumptown’s Hairbender I picked up at Mavelous in San Francisco and pulled out of the freezer this morning.

The real question that I don’t have a good answer for is how can you offer great coffee or espresso service within a company without a dedicated barista, a good grinder, and a supply of fresh beans? I’m not sure that whoever picked the Nespresso made the wrong choice based on these factors, but I’ll continue to drink different.

March 25, 2011: Update:

I ordered a cleaning brush for the Nespresso to try and keep things somewhat clean. This morning, as I brought in some donuts, I decided to have a shot, and went through about six or seven blank shots trying to get reasonably clean water out first and pre-heat the demitasse. The first shots looked like very weak coffee and there were grounds in the cup, but eventually I reached a level of comfort with the water that came out and pulled the shot. This was about the third I’ve tried from this machine and it’s got the typical Italian espresso profile of dark hazelnut, chocolate, caramel flavors but very little acidity or liveliness. It was also a little bitter, but it wasn’t bad for office coffee. I think I’ll pick up a lab wash squeeze bottle like the one I use at home shown below to help with the cleaning but I think that the best use for this machine for me may be using the steam wand to heat up the water reservoir in my Twist to the perfect temp.